Looking for a website to learn how to code?
Maybe you want to pursue a career in development or programming, or maybe you just want to pick up some new skills.
If you’re on the job hunt, and you’re thinking web development or programming is right for you, you’re on a good path.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:
“Employment of web developers is projected to grow 27 percent from 2014 to 2024, much faster than the average for all occupations.”
Consider that all other jobs average a projected 7% growth in the same time period (according to BLS), 27% is a super-impressive number.
USA News puts Web Developer on their list of “The 25 Best Jobs of 2016” just below Physician. Not bad.
Guess which occupation is above that (and above Physicians and Surgeons)?
Software developer.
That same article puts a web developer’s salary at just above $63,000, and a software developer’s salary at a whopping $95,000. Depending on where you live, either of those numbers could set you up with a comfortable lifestyle.
The bottom line is:
Developers and Programmers get paid well, and employers can’t get enough of them right now. That means you’re on the right path.
Which is probably why there are TONS of places online to learn how to code these days.
So, with all of the options nowadays, how do you pick the best online learning website to learn how to code?
Well, here are the top 8 websites for learning how to code from across the web.
“Own your future by learning new skills online”
Udemy is unique because it’s the only site on this list that focuses on letting individuals sell courses as well as take them. Udemy courses are taught by other Udemy members. Everyday people all over the world sell courses on Udemy and make a decent side income. Some of them are even making a living selling their Udemy courses.
That might bring into question the quality of Udemy courses, but they do have a vetting process for instructors and their courses. Each course also has reviews, so reading through those can help determine the level of quality as well.
When it comes to the learning side of Udemy, they boast that you can “find a course on virtually anything” on their site, and that’s not far from the truth.
Udemy has more than 40,000 courses and 12 million students, with topics such as development, design, photography, fitness, music, and even pet care. They have one of the most expansive libraries out of most of their competition.
Here are a few points on Udemy:
Lots of free content
Courses taught by individuals, not Udemy themselves
Courses are made up of video mini-lectures
Self-paced
Classes are short, with little to no feedback
Discussion forums
Assessments with no penalties for wrong answers
Wide variety of courses with lots of options
Price: Per course, varies from $20-200 (Find Udemy coupons on Dealspotr to lower the price)
“Over 4000 courses in Business, Technology and Creative Skills taught by industry experts.”
Lynda.com has been around for a while, and is now owned by LinkedIn. It started with a woman (named Lynda) teaching her multimedia students. Now Lynda.com teaches business, technology, and creative skills.
Topics include development, design, photography, video, marketing, music, animation, CAD, and more.
A few points on Lynda.com:
Instructors are experts, and they’re well-vetted
One price gets you access to all of their courses
No per-course purchase option
Certificates for course completion
Learning paths guide you
Mainly geared towards software and multimedia, but they also have some academic material as well
Price: $34.99/month or $29.99/month if paid annually (Find Lynda.com coupons on Dealspotr to lower the price)
“Don’t just keep up with technology, master it.”
Pluralsight calls itself an “on-demand technology learning platform”, and they have over 5,000 courses, mostly geared towards those who want to learn software development, IT, or “creative” skills.
They also have courses for architecture and construction, manufacturing and design, data professionals, cyber security, and business, which differentiates them from some other online learning sites.
Development and programming topics include HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python, and more. As I mentioned before, they also have a selection of design and IT courses as well - although there don’t seem to be nearly as many design courses as there are on development and IT.
They offer “paths”, which are curricula for specific specialties (such as Java or Python), where expert authors give guidance as you go along.
A few points on Pluralsight:
Learn at your own pace
Offer skill test so you know where to start learning and where learning gaps are
Can take pre-made paths or one-off courses from their library
Mainly for software development, IT, and creative professionals, but also offer other courses on topics such as manufacturing and architecture.
Price: $29/month or $299/year; $499/year for business (Find Pluralsight coupons on Dealspotr to lower the price)
“Online, on-demand training for IT pros”
CBT Nuggets is all about IT. If you’re an IT professional or someone looking to get into IT, this might be a good place to look.
They look like they cater more to businesses who want to keep their students up-to-date on their IT training, and they claim to be “trusted” by the likes of Google and Amazon.
A few points on CBT Nuggets:
Over 200 online IT courses
Topics include networking, security, and virtualization
Preparation for industry-recognized certifications
Pricing: Starts at $84/month (Find CBT Nuggets coupons on Dealspotr to lower the price)
“Learn to code and help nonprofits”
Free Code Camp teaches beginners how to code (as you could probably guess), but it’s unique because of two reasons.
First, they don’t charge a dime. It’s completely free.
Second, once you learn to code, you can actually work with real nonprofits solving real problems. This is cool because one of the most valuable experience you can get as a developer is solving real-world problems. There’s nothing like it. And on top of that, you get to help nonprofits who are changing the world. How neat is that?
Here are a few points to know about Free Code Camp:
Completely free
Hundreds of hours of coding lessons
Connects you with nonprofits who need coding work
Community chatrooms
Offline meetups
Skills include HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
Student-friendly learning interface with code editor for hands-on learning
Great for building a portfolio and getting real-word experience.
Price: Free
“Learn Web Design, Coding & Much More”
Treehouse is one of the most popular sites for learning how to code. They’ve been around since 2011, and they’ve had a big impact in a short time frame. They currently offer over 200 courses on topics such as web design, coding, app development, business, and more.
One of the features that stands out is the focus on allowing students to take “tracks”. Tracks are sets of pre-made curricula with a specific goal in mind. For example, they have a front end web development track that walks you through everything you need to learn in order to become a front end web developer.
Each track is made up of different courses, all in a specific order that is designed so that the material makes the most sense. Each track also begins with necessary prerequisite courses, so beginners won’t get lost jumping into something they don’t quite understand.
Tracks are great for beginners looking to start from scratch with a specific goal in mind. Other tracks include “Learn WordPress”, “Learn Python”, “Web Design”, and much more.
They also have a library where students can find specific courses without having to go through tracks to find them.
A few points to know about Treehouse:
Over 1000 videos from expert teachers
194,000+ students and companies
Library of courses you can search through and watch one at a time
Tracks that take you from zero to completion
Easy to understand layout and curriculum
Video lessons are followed by quizzes and hand-on exercises
Helpful student forum
Ability to pause and unpause subscription
Earn badges that display what you’ve learned
Price: $25/month of $250 annually (Find Treehouse coupons on Dealspotr to lower the price)
“Learn to code interactively, for free.”
Codecademy is a great place for complete beginners to start learning to code for free. Their site says they currently have “over 25 million learners from around the globe”, and for good reason.
Codecademy’s lessons are taught alongside a text editor that allows students to make changes to example code and see the outcome immediately. This is great for hands-on learning, and really gives you a sense of accomplishment that makes you want to keep going.
Here are a few points to know about Codecademy:
Completely free, similar to Free Code Camp
All text based, no video
Step-by-step training good for complete beginners
Offer objective-specific or coding language-specific courses
Fun to use with lots of hands-on practice
Price: Free
“Accelerate your career with the credential that fast-tracks you to job success.”
Udacity differentiates from other online learning platforms by having what they call Nanodegrees. These are timed courses, similar to a courses at a traditional college, but much shorter in length at a significantly lower cost.
Their program categories include web development, software engineering, data science, and more. They even offer non-tech courses such as “How to Build a Startup”, “App Monetization”, and more.
Their courses are video-based, and typically include exercises. Nanodegrees are made up of courses and projects that receive “personalized feedback”.
Think of the free courses as a way to ramp you up for a Nanodegree, at least that’s the way it seems at first glance. Their free course catalog isn’t quite as well-laid-out as some other online learning platforms, but their main focus seems to be their Nanodegrees, which all but guarantee you a job with a large company. (Nanodegrees Plus actually does guarantee you a job!)
A few points to know about Udacity:
Offer Nanodegrees that are designed to help you get a job through partnerships with large companies like Google and AT&T
Nanodegrees Plus guarantees you a job after graduation or your money back
Complete a Nanodegree within 12 months and get 50% of your tuition back
Offer free courses, but not quite as structured as some other online learning sites
Topics include: Programming, front-end web development, app development, engineering, and more
Price: Around $199/month for Nanodegrees; Some courses are free (Find Udacity coupons on Dealspotr to lower the price)
If you want to strictly learn how to code either to get a job or for other professional reasons, I would try Codecademy, Free Code Camp, and Treehouse. Two of them are free and the other comes with a free trial.
If you don’t like what you see when you get through those three, take a look at Lynda.com or Pluralsight. Both seem to be taught by experts and offer paths of learning.
If you have a slightly higher budget and want to focus on getting a good job in the development or programming fields, look at Udacity. Their Nanodegrees may be just what you’re looking for.
If you simply want to learn to code for personal skill enhancement, or maybe you just think coding is cool and you want a quick tutorial-type learning environment, Udemy might be the right fit for you. Plus, you can learn a very wide variety of skills on Udemy, so you’ll be able to dabble in other skillsets as well.
Lastly, if you’re looking more for training around the IT or cyber security fields, check out CBT Nuggets and Pluralsight. Both seem to have a great reputation teaching students these skillsets.
At the end of the day, the best thing you can do is find a program that is the right fit for you - regardless of what anyone else tells you. Some people love certain sites while others absolutely hate them. It’s all a matter of preference.
Each site in this list is different, and has a different way of presenting and teaching the material. It’s all about finding the approach and presentation that resonates with you.
The good thing is, most online education sites offer free trials, so use that to your advantage and try a few of them before committing to one. Learning to code won’t be a quick and easy task, so finding the platform (or platforms) that you’ll actually want to stick with for the long haul is one of the keys to sticking it out, learning to code, and changing your life.
Mike is a husband and father of 2 who studies the art of never paying full price for anything.
